Sudan, Honduras, DRC-Rwanda
Today's three stories you should know
Sudan
Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group (RSF), which besieged and then captured the city of el-Fasher, is holding residents for ransom and beating and killing those whose families cannot pay, according to Reuters. The news agency—citing witnesses, aid workers and researchers—reported that large groups of civilians are being held in villages near the city, while others were captured and brought back into el-Fasher. Their families are being asked for ransoms of thousands of U.S. dollars. The United Arab Emirates-backed RSF, which has been at war with Sudan’s military for two and a half years, laid siege to the city for 18 months before embarking on a spree of ethnically motivated killings.
More from Reuters here.
Proximities Picks
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Honduras
It’s been ping-pong stuff in Honduras as a chaotic count process after a presidential election has seen the two main candidates swap the lead several times. A flip in numbers today saw conservative candidate Nasry Asfura pull in front of centrist Salvador Nasralla, with 84.4% of the votes counted. The National Party’s Asfura was on 40.05%, just 8,000 votes ahead of the Liberal Party’s Nasralla. Rixi Moncada, leader of the ruling leftist LIBRE Party, was far behind in third place. U.S. President Donald Trump has been a vocal backer of Asfura, claiming without evidence that there is an attempt to steal the election from him.
More from Al Jazeera here.
DRC-Rwanda
U.S. President Donald Trump is to host the leaders of Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to sign a ceasefire deal in his latest attempt to position himself as a global peacemaker and gain access to DRC’s valuable mineral resources. The Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group has been at war with DRC forces in the east of the country for years with the conflict escalating this year when it captured swathes of territory, including several key cities. Analysts, though, are doubtful the deal will quickly bring the violence to an end.
More from AP here.